George Pipgras was a P who played for the New York Yankees from 1923-1924, 1927-1933. Career stats: 93-64 record, 4.03 ERA, 794 strikeouts.
George Pipgras won 24 games for the 1928 New York Yankees, the most in the American League, and four years earlier he could barely find the plate. That's the whole arc in one sentence: a rookie so wild that Miller Huggins shipped him to the minors to fix him, and a pitcher good enough two years later to anchor the best pitching staff in franchise history. He also happened to be standing on the mound, ball in hand, for the single most argued-over moment in World Series history.
Path to the Bronx
Pipgras was born December 20, 1899, in Ida Grove, Iowa, and enlisted in the Army at seventeen during World War I, serving overseas with an engineer regiment before he ever threw a professional pitch. The Yankees signed him first and sent him to Madison of the South Dakota League in 1921, then let him get away -- the Red Sox scooped him up for $1,000 (a bargain-bin price even by 1922 standards) and stashed him in Charleston.
It didn't last. On January 3, 1923, Boston traded Pipgras back to New York, along with outfielder Harvey Hendrick, for catcher Al DeVormer and cash -- the same pipeline that delivered Waite Hoyt and Herb Pennock to the Bronx, Ed Barrow raiding his old organization for arms Boston wouldn't develop. Pipgras debuted that June, made the 1923 championship roster as a 23-year-old with a live arm and no command, and watched that World Series from the bench.
Two Years to Fix a Fastball
The Yankees had a problem: Pipgras threw hard and threw wild, and nobody trusted him with a lead. Huggins optioned him out. "Two years in the minor leagues will cure him," the manager reportedly said. He wasn't exaggerating by much -- Pipgras went 19-15 at Nashville and Atlanta in 1925, then 23-18 at St. Paul in 1926, piling up innings until the control held. His own control, he admitted once the fix took, "used to be awful" but "began to improve steadily" once he'd logged enough games at St. Paul to trust it. Huggins brought him back for 1927.
Yankees Career
Pipgras arrived on the historic 1927 club as a complementary piece, going 10-3 with a 4.11 ERA behind Hoyt and Pennock, then won Game 2 of that year's World Series -- a complete-game seven-hitter, 6-2 over Pittsburgh. In 1928, he became the ace: 24 wins, league-leading totals in wins, starts, and innings, and a World Series Game 2 win over 41-year-old Grover Cleveland Alexander, 9-3, chasing the future Hall of Famer in a four-run third.
| Yankees Record | 93-64, 4.03 ERA (1923-24, 1927-33) |
| Peak Season (1928) | 24-13, 3.38 ERA, led AL in wins, starts, and innings (300.2) |
| World Series Starts | 3-0, 2.77 ERA (1927, 1928, 1932) |
| Championships on Roster | 1923, 1927, 1928, 1932 |
| Post-Playing Career | AL umpire, 1938-1946 |
He was durable in a way that reads strangely now -- 300-plus innings in a single season, every start expected to go the distance. The 1928 pitching trio of Pipgras, Hoyt, and Pennock combined for 64 regular-season wins, but Pennock's arm gave out before October -- Tom Zachary stepped in, and it was Hoyt, Pipgras, and Zachary who threw all 36 innings of that year's World Series sweep without a single reliever. Pipgras was the least established of the three when the season started. By October, he was the one holding a scoreless lead.
The Called Shot
Pipgras's final season as a Yankee, 1932, ended with a 16-9 record and a start nobody who watched it ever stopped arguing about. Game 3 of that year's World Series, October 1 at Wrigley Field, Pipgras took the mound against the Cubs with Ruth in the middle of a running feud with the Chicago bench. In the fifth inning, with the count full and the Wrigley crowd howling, Ruth gestured toward the outfield and hit the next pitch out.
He had the best view in the ballpark that day (sixty feet, six inches, give or take). Decades later, in an interview recorded for the Baseball Hall of Fame's oral history collection, he settled the argument as far as he was concerned.
The Babe pointed out to right field, and that's where he hit the ball.
He worked into the ninth before Gabby Hartnett led off with a home run and Billy Jurges singled. Manager Joe McCarthy went to Herb Pennock, who got the final three outs. Final score: Yankees 7, Cubs 5. Pipgras got the win, his third and last in a World Series uniform.
Key Moments
Traded Back to New York
Boston sends Pipgras and Harvey Hendrick to the Yankees for catcher Al DeVormer and cash, part of the same Ed Barrow pipeline that brought Hoyt and Pennock to the Bronx.
Rebuilt in the Minors
Optioned out by Miller Huggins to fix his control, Pipgras goes 19-15 at Nashville and Atlanta, then 23-18 at St. Paul, before returning to the Yankees rotation in 1927.
World Series Game 2
Pipgras throws a complete-game seven-hitter, beating the Pirates 6-2 at Forbes Field in his first World Series start.
American League Wins Leader
Goes 24-13 with a 3.38 ERA, leading the AL in wins, starts, and innings pitched as the ace of the pennant-winning Yankees staff.
Wins the Called Shot Game
Starts and wins Game 3 of the World Series at Wrigley Field, the game in which Babe Ruth gestures toward the outfield before homering. Pipgras is relieved by Herb Pennock in the ninth.
Sold to the Red Sox
New Boston owner Tom Yawkey buys Pipgras and infielder Billy Werber from the Yankees for a reported $100,000 cash.
From the Mound to Behind the Plate
A broken arm suffered in a freak accident against Detroit ended Pipgras as an effective pitcher soon after the sale to Boston. He pitched two forgettable games in 1934 and five more in 1935 before he was done. Most players in his position drift away from the game. Pipgras went the other way -- he became an American League umpire in 1938 (a former pitcher, judging balls and strikes for a living) and held the job for nine seasons.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was George Pipgras's record with the Yankees?
Pipgras went 93-64 with a 4.03 ERA across parts of nine seasons in pinstripes (1923-24, 1927-33). His best year came in 1928, when he went 24-13 with a 3.38 ERA and led the American League in wins, starts, and innings pitched.
Did George Pipgras pitch in the Babe Ruth called shot game?
Yes. Pipgras started and won Game 3 of the 1932 World Series at Wrigley Field, the game in which Ruth gestured toward the outfield before hitting a home run off Charlie Root. Pipgras worked into the ninth inning before Herb Pennock relieved him to close out a 7-5 Yankees win.
Why did the Yankees send George Pipgras to the minor leagues?
Pipgras threw hard but couldn't control it as a young pitcher, and manager Miller Huggins optioned him out after the 1924 season to fix his mechanics. He spent 1925 with Nashville and Atlanta and 1926 with St. Paul, sharpening his control before returning to New York's rotation in 1927 as a much more reliable pitcher.
How many World Series did George Pipgras win with the Yankees?
Pipgras was on the roster for four Yankees championships -- 1923, 1927, 1928, and 1932 -- though he didn't pitch in 1923 as a rookie. He started and won three World Series games in his career, one apiece in 1927, 1928, and 1932, and never lost a Series decision.
What did George Pipgras do after his playing career ended?
A broken arm effectively ended his pitching career in the mid-1930s. Pipgras became an American League umpire in 1938, worked the position for nine seasons through 1946, and later scouted for the Boston Red Sox, the same organization that once owned his contract as a young pitcher.
Pipgras spent two years in the bushes learning to throw strikes, then spent the rest of his career proving it was worth the wait. He beat a future Hall of Famer in one World Series and won the game people still argue about a century later. Not bad for a pitcher Huggins once had to send away just to keep.
Career Stats
Regular Season
| Year | G | GS | W | L | SV | IP | H | ER | K | BB | ERA | WHIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1929 | 44 | 33 | 18 | 12 | 0 | 250.2 | 250 | 116 | 143 | 105 | 4.16 | 1.42 |
| 1930 | 49 | 30 | 15 | 15 | 5 | 249.0 | 272 | 120 | 129 | 74 | 4.34 | 1.39 |
| 1931 | 43 | 14 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 171.1 | 163 | 68 | 74 | 73 | 3.57 | 1.38 |
| 1932 | 38 | 27 | 16 | 9 | 0 | 248.2 | 275 | 124 | 127 | 104 | 4.49 | 1.52 |
| 1933 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 33.0 | 32 | 12 | 14 | 12 | 3.27 | 1.33 |
| Career | 295 | 170 | 93 | 64 | 13 | 1490.0 | 1674 | 730 | 794 | 647 | 4.41 | 1.56 |
Career-best seasons highlighted in gold. Stats via Retrosheet.
Postseason
| Year | G | GS | W | L | SV | IP | H | ER | K | BB | ERA | WHIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1927 | 1 | -- | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9.0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 2.00 | -- |
| 1928 | 1 | -- | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9.0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 2.00 | -- |
| 1932 | 1 | -- | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8.0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 4.50 | -- |
| Career | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 26.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |